What does Lisa Marie Presley have to say about her famous dad? And why did
two of her high-profile marriages last just months? Keep watching to
see how Presley has transformed, from the time she was a child to age 54.
Her childhood with Elvis It appears that Lisa Marie Presley's
childhood was particularly special, considering it was the only time in her life that she got to
spend with her father, Elvis Presley. According to The Washington Post, Lisa Marie had grown up
at Elvis' infamous Graceland estate where she lived with both parents for four years,
until their split in 1972. After her mother, Priscilla Presley, moved to Beverly Hills,
Lisa Marie spent the next few years splitting her time between both of their homes.
When it came to life with her famous dad, Lisa Marie told Playboy,
"It was always a lot of fun. There is not one bad memory. There was
always a lot of energy and life in the house."
"He was very protective, very adoring, very watchful."
Sadly, when Lisa Marie was only nine, Elvis died of heart failure.
Lisa Marie Presley's teen years proved to be a difficult time for the Memphis native,
who was living full-time in L.A. with her mother, Priscilla Presley, following her father's death.
Lisa Marie apparently rebelled. She said of the experience,
"I was in this destructo mode. Smoking, drinking,
drugs, boys. I went through a drug phase for like three years."
The troubled teen got help after hitting rock bottom at age 17. She recalled,
"Eventually, my mom kicked me out of the house and made me stay at the Scientology Center."
Lisa Marie credited that time and her former religion for helping her get better.
At only age 20, Lisa Marie Presley got married for the first time in 1988 to musician Danny Keough.
The two had met through Scientology when Presley was 17, and later tied the knot in a secret
ceremony at their church, according to People. Just days after announcing their marriage, it was
revealed that the newlyweds were also expecting their first child. They later welcomed Danielle
Riley Keough, now known as actor Riley Keough, that next year. Just like their wedding, the birth
was kept very private. However, when the couple had their second child, Benjamin Keough, three
years later, their rep seemingly explained the privacy, saying that per Scientology guidelines,
"The baby was delivered naturally and in complete silence in a calm and supportive environment."
Unfortunately, the couple couldn't make it
work and split in 1994. Presley later explained to Marie Claire,
"There was so much resentment about who I was,
because I had more than he did, and it became a power struggle."
Despite their divorce, the two remained close over the years. She confessed to Marie Claire,
"Leaving my first marriage, for the person that I left it for,
was probably the biggest mistake of my life."
At age 26, Lisa Marie Presley shocked the world by leaving her husband for music superstar Michael
Jackson, soon after he was accused of sexually abusing a child. She later explained to Playboy,
"We met casually at a friend's house,
and he immediately disillusioned me of any preconceived ideas I had of him."
According to Us Weekly, Jackson confided in Presley during his scandal, before they married
just 20 days after her divorce. Presley oddly announced it to the press, stating,
"I dedicate my life to being his wife. I understand and support him."
The two flaunted their love anywhere they could, and Jackson claimed that nobody
thought that the relationship would last, seemingly referring to those who believed
their relationship was just a publicity stunt. The couple continuously denied those rumors.
"He's amazing. I really admire him. I respect him. I admire him. I'm in love with him."
However, just months later, Presley filed for divorce. She told Oprah that
Jackson's relationship with the media complicated their marriage, saying,
"I always confused that manipulation thinking that it meant he didn't love me."
"You know, I took it very personally though. I felt I was disposable."
Yet, when it came to allegations that he was a child molester, she told Playboy,
"If I'd had any reason to suspect that, I would have had nothing to do with the guy."
Michael Jackson wasn't Lisa Marie Presley's only famous husband;
she went on to marry actor Nicolas Cage in 2002. A then-32-year-old Presley was
already engaged to musician John Oszajca when she met Cage in 2000. But if you ask Cage,
it was love at first sight after he spotted her at a party. He gushed to Barbara Walters,
"There's this beautiful girl standing in the middle of the living room, [...] and
she looks up at me with these big, beautiful, soulful eyes, [...] and I just went 'Oh.'"
"And I was thunderstruck."
The couple went on to date for two years, with Cage denying rumors that
it was only because he was a huge Elvis fan. However, their relationship was very rocky,
and they often broke up and got back together. At one point, Presley's $65,000 engagement ring was
even thrown into the ocean during a fight they had on a boat trip.
They did eventually get married, but Cage filed for divorce only three and a half months later.
Presley has no hard feelings though, explaining to Larry King,
"We're sort of these gypsy spirited,
you know, tyrannical pirates. And one pirate marries another, they will sink the ship."
By age 35, Lisa Marie Presley was apparently ready to follow in her father's footsteps
by releasing her own music. Presley had been privately writing songs for years
before she decided to release her debut album To Whom It May Concern, in 2003.
She explained why it took her so long to share her music, telling Playboy,
"I just needed to find my way, stylistically. I wanted to be looked at as an artist,
so I couldn't do anything stupid or shallow or silly."
Fans apparently liked what they heard. The album went certified gold.
"It's going well."
Presley followed that success up with her second album, Now What in 2005, which debuted in the
top 10 of the Billboard charts. However, when promoting her 2012 album, Storm and Grace, she
admitted to Penn Live that she felt her earlier records were overproduced by her own request,
adding that she was terrified. Presley had apparently felt she had a lot to prove
because of who her father was. She said of the experience,
"I know there's always going to be the comparison, but I'm a singer-songwriter."
Lisa Marie Presley became pregnant for the third time at age 40,
two years after she married her fourth husband, musician Michael Lockwood,
in 2006. The Lights Out singer was apparently ready to settle down for good,
"I've chased all the crazies down. I was ready to stop the madness."
She credited Lockwood for helping with that, saying that he was her best friend.
Yet Presley was still dealing with the downsides of fame when she was forced to confirm her
pregnancy after being criticized in the press for gaining weight. She later vented to Marie Claire,
"When did it become okay to give women a hard time for weight gain? Besides,
I'm 40! I'm lucky to even be able to do this."
In October 2008, Presley gave birth to twin daughters, Finley and Harper.
Lisa Marie Presley reportedly made a life change at age 44 when she left the Church of Scientology,
where she had been a member since childhood. She once explained to Playboy what the controversial
religion had offered her, saying that it gave her a better understanding of herself and others.
She even added,
"It's attacked because it's not understood, and that annoys me."
However, Presley seemed to have quit the church in 2012. In an archived USA Today interview where she
did not specifically mention the religion, she did say of the people close to her,
"I was slowly starting to self-destruct. [...] They were taking my soul,
my money, my everything."
Her mother, Priscilla Presley, and her daughter, Riley Keough,
seemingly remained members. In 2017, Radar reported that they tried to get Lisa Marie
to rejoin when she was going through a hard time. An insider also claimed that
Lisa Marie not being part of the church hurt her relationship with her daughter.
It's still unclear if Lisa Marie ever did rejoin. In 2019, the Daily Mail reported that she
planned to write a memoir that would include her experience with Scientology. A source told OK!,
"Her experiences still haunt her to this day. There are whispers she went through hours of
auditing where she was questioned about the most traumatic moments in her life."
"The last two nights we've told you about allegations of physical abuse made by former
high ranking members of the Church of Scientology against the church's leader David Miscavige."
Lisa Marie Presley's life was thrown into another
upheaval at age 48 when she filed for divorce from Michael Lockwood in 2016.
Presley had suggested that it was a nasty split when, according to TMZ, she asked for
full custody of their twin daughters and only wanted Lockwood to have monitored visitation.
"Those girls are now in protective custody."
From there, a bitter custody battle ensued for years, with Presley even accusing Lockwood in
court documents of having disturbing images of children on his computer, according to E! News.
In documents the outlet obtained, Presley wrote,
"When I discovered the photos on [Lockwood's] computer,
and viewed the videos, I was shocked and horrified and sick to my stomach."
Lockwood denied the accusations, telling Entertainment Tonight through his lawyer,
"Ms. Presley chose to file a one-sided, inaccurate version of the facts."
Yet because of those allegations and the investigation that followed, Presley's twins were
put in protective custody in 2017, before moving in with their grandmother, Priscilla Presley.
People reported that the investigation into Presley's claims against Lockwood
eventually concluded with no charges filed in Tennessee.
"Now as for those sexual abuse allegations, officials say they are reviewing evidence.
Lockwood has not been charged with anything."
However, it took almost five years after their initial split for them
to officially be divorced. As of 2021, the pair had joint custody of the twins,
but legal issues were still being worked out.
In 2018, a then-50-year-old Lisa Marie Presley opened up about having a drug addiction,
two years after she reportedly went to rehab. Presley admitted on Today that she was unhappy,
adding that her struggle with addiction began when she was 45. She later recalled how that had
happened in the foreword of Harry Anderson's book, The United States of Opioids: A Prescription for
Liberating a Nation in Pain, writing that she was recovering after the birth of her daughters when
a doctor prescribed her opioids for pain. That short-term prescription, she said, got her hooked.
Presley confessed on Today that she prayed to her late father for help,
but credited her children in the book for inspiring her healing process.
Presley seemingly decided to share her story to raise awareness about addiction.
She said on the show that she's not perfect, but she has grown through her struggles.
"It's what you do with it after; you learn and then you try and help others with it."
What had to make things even more difficult, though, was that Presley had other major
problems at the time, including a legal battle with her former financial manager Barry Siegel.
Presley had sued Siegel for causing her debt by mismanaging her estate. According to People,
Presley had claimed in court documents that she was $16 million in debt. However,
The Blast reported that Siegel blamed that on her extravagant spending habits.
In May 2022, 54-year-old Lisa Marie Presley revealed to fans that she was taking time to
herself to mourn the death of her son, Benjamin Keough, who had died by suicide two years earlier.
Presley had addressed why she was absent on social media, writing on Instagram,
"[...] There really isn't much to say, as I am and will forever be mourning the loss of my son."
She shared how Keough's death had changed her, adding,
"Navigating through this hideous grief that absolutely destroyed
and shattered my heart has swallowed me whole."
However, Presley did take time to comment on 2022's Elvis biopic.
The film clearly meant a lot to Presley,
who said that she watched the movie with her three daughters, and called it spectacular.
While it's unclear what Presley plans for her future, she also shared,
"Not much else aside from my other 3 children gets my time and attention anymore."
In 2021, The U.S. Sun reported that Presley had turned to her first husband,
Danny Keough, for support. An insider dished,
"They are now living with family at a new house in Calabasas and have been grieving together."
It's clear that Presley has been through a lot over the years,
but hopefully a film honoring her beloved father will bring her some comfort.
If you or anyone you know is having suicidal thoughts,
please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline​ at​ 1-800-273-TALK (8255)​.